IncyWincy

Which are the nicer/nicest domestic US properties, apart from the Park Hyatts which are supposedly in a league of their own?

I am talking about hopefully newer / newly renovated so that bathrooms are more decent, clean (as opposed to peeling and dusty) and more reliable housekeeping service and such like. Also interested in having a nice suite if possible, will use DSU.

At the top of my mind will be Andaz Fifth, then perhaps Andaz Wall Street, Huntington Beach.

What else?

Thank you.

1fan

I would look at the Hyatt web site the catagory 6 and 7 hotels are the nicest

BobR

Andaz Wall Street -- Its a bit worn in my experience, its fine, but I would not put it in the 'nicest' category.

There has been some suggestion here that a DSU at the Jersey City Regency may have the biggest 'bang for the buck' in terms of view.

Park Hyatt DC remains my domestic favorite, hands down.

Mommy Points

Not sure of the context, but PH New York I am betting will be great. Other than the PH brand though, I'd certainly include the Andaz Maui on your list. It just opened in Sept 2013, so still quite new and nice.

IncyWincy

Thank you.
What about in states such as Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, Georgia, Arkansas, the Carolinas? Am I right (having looked at the Hyatt map) that I ought to try non-Hyatts?

BobR

Having been in many Hyatts in most of those states I can say the best you will do is some decent convention type properties. Think functional and unremarkable. No property in these states should be considered the best that Hyatt has to offer.

NC: Hyatt House downtown is decent (it started life as a Sierra). Good location. The best that Hyatt can offer in NC.

SC: Regency Greenville. Old school atrium property. Rooms are in need of renovation but generally well kept. Only thing to recommend it is its location in one of the nicest small cities in the SE US. This is the best Hyatt can offer in SC

GA: Regency Atlanta. Another old school atrium property, but this one has been renovated. I am consistently impressed with the quality of the property and staff. Very good R Club

Grand Atlanta: I hear very good things about it but its location is bad (for me)

Regency Savannah: another old school property which really needs renovation. I -love- the riverview rooms (container ship bridges are at eye level!) but otherwise blah.

I have heard good things about the Andaz Savannah but not stayed there (no river view)

FL: Regency Jacksonville. The single most boring hyatt I have ever stayed in.

LA: New Orleans Regency is a decent, if undistinguished, hotel. Its huge, but not unpleasant. Long walk from entrance to elevators. I actually like its location since it is NOT in the quarter and it is convenient to uptown. Good RC (but can get crowded).

TX: Grand San Antonio. Giant convention hotel which has (IMO) not been well maintained. Despite building height, views are blah. Good club (despite fox news on tv)

Regency Dallas: nicely renovated. I really enjoyed this hotel. No club but restrauant is good at bfast and views of the city are great. Very good access to transit (unfortunately its Dallas transit). There is some noise from trains on city side.

Grand DFW: IMO this is a spectacular hyatt property in every respect other than location. However it is a LONG (and expensive) trip from DFW to the city. Orange line opening at DFW will make it a little cheaper to get downtown (but its still a long ride).

Outside this region I have always had great stays in Seattle (Grand and Olive 8) and Chicago at the Park (despite mixed opinions here), Miracle Mile and the Regency (but it can often feel impersonal due to its size). There are some -great- rooms at the Chicago Regency and some real dogs. I really like the executive suites there, but they are not the standard DSU rooms.

Edit: I had forgotten about the Texas resort properties (never been there). I don't believe that there are any other Hyatt resorts elsewhere in the South.

spgplat21

Not sure what you're looking for (city vs. resort, etc.), but the Hyatt Lost Pines outside of Austin and the Hyatt Hill Country Resort outside of San Antonio are both pretty nice family-oriented resorts. The Lost Pines property is newer and nicer in my opinion, but I've been to both several times and always enjoyed them. These stack up pretty favorably to resorts in those areas. Diamond suite upgrades get almost identical suites at both properties. A standard sized bedroom, with an attached living room area with sofa bed and 4-person round dining table.

The Driskill in Austin was also recently added to the Hyatt portfolio and is arguably the nicest city hotel in Texas. This is an old school property though, so definitely wouldn't meet your newness requirement. The suites there are each different and there's been several reports of DSU's getting some very nice suites. The regencies and grands in Dallas, Houston and San Antonio are OK, but nothing special.

RichardInSF

GH DFW isn't as bad if you have a rental car, as they will stamp your parking tikcet and you don't have to pay to park at the hotel. It is a fair drive (sometimes on toll roads) to most Dallas/Ft Worth destinations, however.

IncyWincy

Thank you very much for the kind help.

We will have own car. In fact we are thinking of doing a drive through the few states that we have not been to or seldom go to. We regularly go to New York and neighbouring New England, DC and environs, Illinois and neighbours, and California. Have been to Oregon, Nevada and a few of their neighbours, also Florida a few times - and knowing that it is a big country, we are thinking it is time we drive out a bit!

Indeed I looked at Andaz Savannah on their website - and seems good in the circumstances - perhaps the loft (which is what DSU gets) is not a real suite so we will book a suite if that is desired, rather than hoping for one for luck. Birmingham AL seems nice on their website too.

BobR

I stayed their in its previous incarnation (a Winfrey). The rooms were fine (not great) but the hotel is attached (as an anchor tenant) to a mall in Hoover. Given its mall location you have already seen exactly what surrounds the hotel. The strangest aspect of the Winfrey was you had to pay to park (in a segregated portion of the mall parking lot). This may have been the only payed parking in the whole state of Alabama....

MSPeconomist

Of the regular Hyatts (not PH or Andaz), I would list the following:

Tampa

Minneapolis

Wichita

Philadelphia at the Bellvue (historic building)

Santa Rosa (?) on the edge of California wine country

Cambridge (Boston)

Tamaya (spelling?) resort outside of ABQ

Gainey Ranch in Scottsdale

chicaloca453

I like the Mission Bay San Diego property a lot. They always treat Diamonds well.

The Huntington Beach property is very nice but on the pricey side especially with the resort fee factored in.

The Grand Hyatt in San Francisco is good as is the San Francisco Airport Hyatt.

The best properties domestic IMO are in Hawaii. All offerings in Hawaii, including the Hyatt Place in Waikiki, are fabulous. I can't say enough good things about them, save for the Andaz which I haven't had a cance to visit yet.

The Newport Beach Hyatt is nice IMO (and yes I know I'm in the minority), but the addition of a resort fee was beyond unnecessary. This hotel had a chance to attract business travelers after Irvine closed but decided to take the cash grab instead. It is not waived for Diamonds either so you'd have to get a good deal to make it worth your while.

Also I will say positive things about the Hyatt Santa Barbara. Yes I may be the only one, but I like it. The Diamond Breakfast can be used with room service too which is a nice perk. Santa Barbara is one of the better California coastal cities so the location can't be beat. I strongly recommend a visit there even if you skip the Hyatt.

txflyer77

I find the HR San Antonio to be much better overall than the GH. Better maintained, superior location and generally a few bucks cheaper.

Unless I was in town specifically for the convention center, I'd pick the HR.

MSPeconomist

The Manchester Hyatt in San Diego is nice for a large convention property. Its rooms were just renovated too.

IncyWincy

Thank you. Whereas I thought we would essentially be staying at the Four Seasons this time, thanks to the good people here, I have booked a few of the suggested Hyatts. So glad we have FT!